An analysis of the literary life of the sixteenth president explores the ways in which his views were shaped by classic literature and how he used language as a vehicle for complex ideas and an instrument of change in both political and personal arenas.

"All the books he could lay his hands on," 1809-1825 -- Shakespeare, 1825-1834 -- Burns, Byrons, and love letters, 1834-1837 -- "How miserably things seem to be arranged," 1837-1842 -- "Were I president," 1842-1849 -- "Honest seeking, " 1849-1854 -- "The current of events," 1855-1861 -- The master of language and the presidency, 1861-1865.